Trapped in a Cave
by Heachan
Summary: Ed and Winry have a fight and end up stuck in the mountains.  The title kind of gives too much away, he.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One-The Fight

"Edward, you're such a jerk!" The automail mechanic threw a wrench at the blond and he moved quickly, avoiding it, She stood up, seething before stomping away from the state alchemist. It was typical for him to stick his foot in his mouth but this time she was fed up with. She had plenty of customers here in Rush Valley that actually appreciated her talents. He just went around destroying her work and then complained that it was easy to break. All she wanted was for him to acknowledge that he needed her work and that when he wasn't swinging at things, it worked just fine. As she walked down the main street, she paused for a second to figure out where she was going. In her moment of anger, she really hadn't thought about where she was going. She just couldn't stay in the shop with Ed. He had always been able to infuriate her with little to no effort. Glancing up, she noticed the sky looked as though it could open up and drenched the whole town at any minute. Letting out a tired sigh, she headed for the mountains just out of town.

oOoOo

"Brother! Why would you say something like that?" Edward was getting really tired of everyone lecturing him.

"It's not my fault she's so sensitive. I didn't mean anything by it." In fact his automail was working fine, it just needed an adjustment.

"And I can't believe you didn't go after her. The least you could have done was apologize." The older Elric rolled his eyes.

"Why should I apologize? She's the one who stormed out over a joke. Frankly I should be mad since she assumes that I _always _break it." He rubbed his shoulder, knowing it was going to rain soon. Finally letting out an annoyed sound, and he hoped off the table he had been sitting on. "Fine, I'll go after her," he grumbled.  
"So where would she go?" His amber gaze shifted to the owner of the shop.

"Well she mentioned something earlier about getting some Ore. So you might want to check the mountain path. She usually get's it from Dominick."

oOoOo

Sure enough Winry got caught in the rain. Finding a cave, she hurried inside before she got soaked. Rubbing her arms together, she got in several feet and had to stop due to a lack of light. She leaned against several large rocks that made up one of the walls of the cave. Lightning struck nearby causing her to wrap her arms around herself even more. Thunder followed shortly after. As she moved further into the darkness, her foot hit a rock and she fell forward. She landed hard on the rough ground. Trying to get back up, she let out a hiss when she tried to put any weight on her ankle. All she could manage was to sit up.

"Well this is just great."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two-Cave In

"Why does she always gotta overreact. I didn't mean anything by it," Edward was grumbling to himself. He had stopped on the way out of town to get a lantern as dark clouds were moving in. It wasn't even just the weather, the day was coming to a close and soon it would be dark out. Finding the trail that led up to the mountain pass, he slouched even more. "She's really causing me a lot of trouble here." As he headed up the pathway, a large drop of water hit him square in the face. Looking up ahead, he realized that he was walking right into the storm. His luck couldn't possibly get any better.

oOoOo

Winry could hear the sound of rain outside. Leaning forward, she rubbed her ankle. By this point, it was slightly swollen and hurt when she moved it. There was no way she was going to be able to make it back to town without help. She let out a frustrated sound. She was mad at Ed and now even more angry with herself for letting him get to her. She knew he was just teasing her like he always did, but lately she saw his jokes as his way of covering up things that he didn't want to bother her with. But as much as he tried to avoid the serious conversations with her, she could read between the lines easily. She knew that after so many years of searching he had hoped to have Al back in his body.

"That still doesn't mean he has to take his frustrations out on me though," she muttered to herself. It was the fact that he pushed himself so much and never let up that made her want to cry. That even with his tough exterior, she knew him better then that.

There was another strike of lightning, this time close enough for the ground to vibrate beneath her. Several small rocks broke loose and fell at her feet. Glancing up, she could barely make out the large wall of stone across from her. Shifting some, she wondered if it would be safer, closer to the entrance. Before she had the chance to decide, she heard something over the sound of the rain. It was faint but seemed to be getting louder.

"I'm always the one that has to keep track of everyone. It's bad enough that Al goes wondering off every time he even senses a stray cat nearby now I gotta deal with this." Winry's mouth twisted into a deep frown. She knew exactly who was getting closer. He was honestly the one person she did not want to see right now. "Every time I gotta get even the smallest amount of maintenance done, it take longer then planned." He let out a loud sneeze. "Great, now I'm probably gonna get sick. This is such a pain."

Winry picked up one of the small rocks nearby and waited patiently. As soon as Edward came into view, she chucked the stone right at his head. It made contact, almost knocking him off his feet. "Ahh!...Ow!" He rubbed the side of his head. "Where'd that come from" His gaze wondered to the direction that the rock came from.

"I can hear you, yah know!" Dumbfounded, he shined his lantern into the darkened space.

"What are you doing in there?" His tone sounded more annoyed then concerned.

"I didn't want to get stuck in the rain!" Ed turned sideways so he could get inside the cave. He shined the light around the large area. It was surprising how hollow this place was.

"So why are you sitting in here?" He made it over to her, pushing his wet hair out of his face.

"It's not like I want to be here, I twisted my ankle."

"That was smooth." She glared up at him.

I didn't do it on purpose!" He brought his hands up defensively.

"Hey I didn't come out here to argue with you. Let's just head back to town." He offered his hand to help her up.

"So you're not even sorry for what you said earlier?"

"Can we talk about it when we're not in some damp hole in the ground?" Before she got the chance to say anything, lightning struck the mountain side, causing the whole place to shake. Ed glanced above them, worried that the whole place could fall in on them. He clapped his hands together and pressed his palms against the large rock formation Winry was leaning against. The blue current light the whole place up, molding the ceiling of the cave to the walls. Unfortunately he hadn't gotten a good enough look of the place as another large rock slid out of place and headed straight for them. Hearing the sound of it scrapping against the ground he turn with little time to stop it.

A/N-Reviews! Come on I give you a chapter a day, I deserve some love here!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three-Distraction

Alphonse stood at the shops entrance, watching as the rain drenched the town. The streets cleared up pretty quickly and there wasn't a person in sight now.

"I wonder what's taking them so long. He had to have found her by now." Garfield walked over and leaned against the door frame.

"Maybe they got lost," he hinted, getting Al's attention.

"Lost? We have to find them! What if they get caught in this weather? Brother doesn't do well when it's raining as it is and what if Winry gets sick." The suit of armor began to panic at the thought.

"I meant, maybe they want some time alone." The automail mechanic tried to explain but there was no point. Al was already envisioning every horrible possibility.

"What if Ed ran into bandits up on the mountain trail and they beat him up and kidnapped Winry. We don't have money if they want a ransom for her!" Garfield arched an eyebrow and took a step away from the younger Elric.

"I think you're making this into something it's not."  
oOoOo

The lantern had been knocked over, making the little light they had even dimmer. Winry wasn't sure what had happened as she remained hunched on the floor with her arms over her head. She could hear Edward breathing heavy but didn't know what he had done to keep them from getting crushed. Finally he let out a groan.

"Dammit..." She tried to see what he was doing. Reaching over, she grabbed the lantern and turned the flame up on it.

"Ed, are you okay."

"No,...I'm kind of stuck." As she brought the light up, she let out a gasp. Ed had his body angled in a way that look uncomfortable. His metal shoulder was braced against the solid rock. He had his automail arm extended as far as it could go with his elbow locked. It was the only thing keeping them from being crushed by the boulder that had fallen towards them. Her gaze dropped and he had his metal foot wedged under the rock as well. She could hear the gears overexerting themselves as they were pushed to their limit.

"How are we suppose to get out though? I can't leave you here." He grit his teeth, trying to concentrate.

"We'll just have to wait for someone to come and find us."

"Can't you use alchemy?" He shook his head. Having to stay this still was already a challenge for him without having to carry on a conversation.

"I don't have anything to draw a transmutation circle with and I can't move or we're dead." Even though he was stubborn enough to stay here until someone comes along, Winry knew full well her work couldn't withstand this kind of pressure for too long.

"We have to give people a sign so that they know we're here." She glanced towards the exit. Even the opening was more cluttered now with rocks but she could still see out to the road.

"You..right, here." Ed carefully shrugged his left shoulder, getting his long black sleeved shirt off. When he got to the point that it was just on his right arm, he ripped it the rest of the way.

"Toss this out so that if someone passes, they'll see it." She grabbed the torn shirt and crawled over to the entrance. Once it was in place, she scooted back to him. She wasn't really sure how he was even able to hold so much weight back. The rock was far larger then he was.

"It almost doesn't seem real. You being able to hold that back."

"I'm not using my weight against it. It's all about leverage. I was able to stop it from moving any closer with my foot and as long as I don't bend my arm, it should hold. It's pretty simple." He wasn't able to see her roll her eyes in the dim light. Even in this kind of predicament, he felt he had to explain himself.

"Just another scientific breakthrough of alchemy." Her tone was obviously sarcastic.

"It's not alchemy," he corrected her. "It's just like when you set a trap using a box and a stick. You don't have to be a genius to know the stick weighs less then the box."

"And you figured all that out in a split second." Again she sounded uninterested.

"Hey I don't see you coming up with any bright ideas." His arm started to shake from the strain and he had to focus more. "Just talk about something else, will yah." There was an unsettling pop from his arm that ceased any further conversation. Ed knew his solution was only a quick fix and wouldn't last for more then a couple hours.

A/N-REVIEWS! XD


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four-A Plan

What little sunlight was available outside had faded awhile ago. It had become deathly quiet as Winry remained hunched over, trying to stay warm. By this point, Edward had dropped his head with his eyes closed. The strain on his shoulder was starting to really bother him but he didn't want to say anything about it. Besides, he was sure Winry had a pretty good idea what her automail could take. Reaching his left arm up, he wiped the sweat from his forehead. Winry glanced up at him.

"Hey Ed, are you okay?" He released a sigh before answering her.

"You should turn the lantern down some...to save the oil." She noticed he avoided her question but nodded anyway. Even with the light lower, someone walking by would be able to see it from the trail. Thinking back, Winry wished she hadn't been so rash earlier. They wouldn't be in this predicament if she hadn't gotten so mad in the first place. Despite how she felt before, now she felt bad for getting Ed in such a mess. He got thrown into enough life and death situations without her help.

"This is all my fault," She spoke softly but it was loud enough for him to hear her.

"Don't go saying that. I'm the one with the big mouth." He shook his head and glanced down at her.

"Yeah, but I took it too personally."

"You kind of did. Since you mentioned it, why did you get so angry? We use to be able to tease each other all the time."

"Because, I'm working so hard to be a better mechanic and you usually break my work with no regard for how much work went into it."

"Do you really think I do that? Trust me, I don't break it on purpose. And the reason I said what I said was because you seem more concerned with your precious automail then me." Her blue gaze shot up at him in shock.

"I don't think that! I worry about you and Al all the time." Edward let out an ironic laugh and shook his head in disbelief.

"Well I'll probably need more then some simple maintenance now." One of the gears up near his shoulder made a low grinding sound. He grew serious again. "How's your ankle?" Winry tried to move it some only to let out a whine.

"It still hurts pretty bad." She glanced back up at him and their eyes met.

"See if you can find a large stick." Nodding, she struggled up, trying not to put a lot of pressure on her one leg. Using the lantern, she found a tree branch a couple of yards away from them. After she broke the extra twigs off, she moved back over to him.

"Okay, I've got one." Ed let out a worn out huff.

"Do you think you can make it back to town and get some help, using that as a crutch." Winry furrowed her brow and worry took over her features.

"You want me to leave you like this?"

"It's after dark. No one is coming out here, not with the weather the way it's been. You have to go get help." She bit her lower lip and shook her head.

"I can't just leave you though. I'm the reason this happened."

"I know you'll come back. Otherwise we'll both be stuck in here for the night and I can't keep this up that long." Tightening her grip in the branch in her hand, she reluctantly nodded back.

"All right, I'll hurry." With that, she left the lantern next to him and carefully made her way through the exit. The rain outside wasn't nearly as bad as it was before. It took her a minute to figure out how to walk with her make shift crutch. She could honestly count on one hand the amount of times she really ever got injured. Having parents who were doctors, she was never big on taking stupid risks. But now she had to hurry and didn't have time to think about her injury. Even though it wasn't raining as hard, the ground was still muddy. She could see the town in sight and tried to go faster down the trail. Unfortunately the stick was not as solid as she thought it was. It gave her little warning when it cracked at the bottom and caused her to fall forward.

A/N-I said REVIEWS!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N-Last chapter. I am soo glad everyone has enjoyed this story. I have loved the reviews from everyone. Ya'll really hate that stick...haha. I hope you enjoy the ending, I made this chapter particularly long for you so please enjoy and feel free to let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!

Chapter Five-Little hope left

Winry went down hard. She let out a surprised yell as she made landed in the rocky mud. Both her knees got scrapped up as well as her hands. The side of her face smacked the ground, breaking her ponytail holder, sending her blond hair everywhere. Not allowing herself to stay there, she tried to push herself back up.

"I have to move. I can't leave Ed back there." Tears stung at the corner of her eyes. Leaning against the side of the mountain, she pushed herself up and carefullu kept going at a slower pace. Each step caused her body to ache even more. Squinting through the pain, she thought she could see a faint light coming towards her. As it moved closer, she could make out a cart as well. She waved her arm to get the drivers attention. "Please stop!" As the cart slowed to a halt, Winry could feel herself reaching her limits. She started to feel light headed.

"Miss Rockbell, are you okay?" It was another shop owner from the town.

"Please, you have to go help my friend. He's trapped up ahead."

"But you're injured, we have to get you back first." She was about to argue for Ed's sake when the dizziness got to her and she closed her eyes. The shop owner moved quickly to catch her before she hurt herself again. "I'll get you back to Garfield's first."

oOoOo

When Winry woke up, she was in her own bed. She tried to sit up quickly but stopped when the room started to spin. Laying back down, she covered her eyes and let out a groan.

"Winry? Are you awake?" She heard Garfield call from the shop. She groaned again and heard him coming up the stairs. "I've got some tea for you," he offered, sitting a steaming mug down on her side table. "What about Ed? Has anyone found him yet?"

"His brother left about forty five minutes ago. He hasn't come back." She pushed herself up and tried to get out of bed. "Winry, you need to stay put. There's nothing you can do right now."

"But I left Ed to get help. I know where he is. If Al doesn't find him soon, he could die."

"Trust me, Al will find him. He knows where you were found. It's only a matter of time before he finds him." Winry's gaze drifted to the end of the bed. Garfield had wrapped her ankle for her. It really wouldn't be smart to go out now. She would just have to hope that Alphonse would find Ed soon.

oOoOo

By this point the lantern's light was starting to die out. Edward was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. His entire back ached by now from the constant strain on his muscles. He had gone over the situation again and again in his mind and there was no way for him to get out. He didn't even have enough time to use alchemy.

"Well at least I convinced Winry to leave. Wouldn't want her here for this." He swallowed hard at the thought. As stubborn as he was, he couldn't last forever. She had to come back soon. He wondered what was taking so long. His arm starting to shake again and it took all his concentration to hold it steady. Once it was steady, he could feel a shift at his wrist. It was difficult to figure out what part would be the weak point. The entire arm had been working harder then it was used to. He tried to put more force on his palm then the fingers only to feel the whole thing shutter. If he could try to redistribute the weight even a little, it might help the automail to last longer. He tried to move his shoulder some, so that the outer side of the port. After a couple minutes of that, his nerves started to throb angrily in response and he couldn't take it any more and had to shift back. "Dammit, this is getting impossible!" His voice echoed in the vastness around him. The reality started to set in.

_'Is this it then, am I really gonna die here alone?'_ His breath quickened as the thought made him want to panic. He had to keep his mind focus. Thinking about the possibility didn't help. But just like any nagging thought, it didn't go away because he wanted it to. _'Maybe I shouldn't have told Winry to leave. Now if I die, I'll be all alone.'_ The thought of being along brought Al to mind and his chest started to ache.

"Can't think that way. I can't leave Al," He found himself yelling it out in order to keep himself motivated. Just as his echoe died down, he could hear something over the light rain outside. He listened carefully as it grew closer. "Hello? Is anyone out there!" His heart leaped at the thought . "Hey. I'm in here!"

"Brother!" A wave of relief rushed through the older Elric when he heard his brother's voice.

"Al, you found me!" Alphonse wasn't able to fit through the entrance but he got busy pulling rocks out of his way. Ed was about to say something when his arm made another nerve wrenching movement. "Alphonse, you've gotta move this thing before it crushes me. I can't hold it back much longer." The suit of armor nodded and clapped his hands together. As the blue light danced around the cave, the ground started to rumble and a large hand shot up, pushing the boulder away from Ed. His legs felt weak and he sunk to his knees, taking in several deep breaths. Alphonse made it inside and over to him.

"Are you going to be okay?" It took him a minute to reply but he nodded back.

"Yeah...Just really worn out. How's Winry?"

"She's okay. She's back at the shop already. If I don't get you bak soon, she'll kill me." Edward smiled lightly back at him.

"Alright, let's get out of here." Alphonse helped him up and hoisted him onto his back.

oOoOo

"Winry, they're back!" The automail mechanic didn't waste any time taking it easy and she got up from the bed and carefully made it down the stairs. Alphonse was just ducking under the doorway as she made it to the first floor.

"Is he okay?" She watched as Al made it over to the couch and carefully slid Ed off his back. By now his older brother was sleeping.

"Yeah, I think so but how he didn't fall of my back, I don't know." He pulled Ed's boots off and grabbed him a blanket off the back of the couch. Winry steadily made her way over. She still felt uneasy after having so many horrible thoughts about them not finding Ed in time.

"Are you sure he's just sleeping? He might be really injured." Alphonse looked up at her from his place on the floor.

"Don't worry. He's tougher then that. You're automail is amazing, Winry. It saved his life." She couldn't help but smile at the comment.

"Thanks Al. Are you sure he doesn't need anything?" There was a loud snore that caught both their attention as Edward turned some to get more comfortable.

"I'm sure he's fine for now. You should get some rest too." She nodded back reluctantly and Garfield helped her back up to her room for the night.

oOoOo

It was almost lunch time the next day before Edward woke up. Rubbing his eyes, he sat up sleepily.

"Bout time you got up. I thought you were going to sleep all day." He turned to see Winry at her bench, already working on his arm. Smirking at her comment, he leaned back on the couch.

"I might as well with just one arm. Not a whole lot to do otherwise."

"It's not gonna take me all day. I'm almost done." Her tone was flat and carried an annoying ring to it.

"Let me guess, there'll be a rushing fee."

"You got it." She glanced back with a smile. Deciding to take a break, she pushed off with her one foot and wheeled her chair over to him. "Let me see your leg. I didn't get a good look at it yet." He brought his metal foot up and placed it in her lap.

"So how bad is the arm? It took quite the beating, I'm sure." She continued studying his heel and then moved up to his ankle."

"You've done worst to it. I'll probably need to change out some of the worn out parts but that's it." She bent his foot back and forth before setting it down. "Your legs fine. I didn't think it took any damage."

"Well next time you decide to run off and get into trouble let me know first and I'll see if we can damage that too, alright?" He made sure to smile when he said it so she knew he was joking this time. She tilted her head and arched her eyebrow for a second before replying.

"Ed, you're such a jerk." She smiled back at him.


End file.
